Covid-19 has transformed patients' lives and healthcare as we know it. Technology plays a critical role in facilitating patient care. Media influences behavior change and reimbursement models are positioned to focus on population health with investment in screening and addressing the social determinants of health. These key evolutions of healthcare have positioned the healthcare system to be more client-centric than ever before. Clients defined here include both citizens seeking preventive care and patients seeking care for an illness.

Healthcare delivery has shifted from within the walls of the hospital to the patient's home connected via digital platforms. Connect digital platforms spread both accurate and inaccurate information at a rapid rate, influencing health outcomes. In the connected world, health behaviors not only influence individual health but have an impact on the health of those around us. We are at a tipping point in healthcare that can utilize technology to make us healthier or suspicious of those providing care due to the vast amount of conflicting information in our current info-demic.

Clinical and non-clinical partnership in tailoring preventive practices and to influence behavioral change has been proposed as a part of public health 3.0. around the world. Digital technologies to empower and engage clients in managing their own care at home with support from family, community, and local clinical and non-clinical partners, has made personalized healthcare possible. In addition, a change in reimbursement models with more focus on population health which include screening and addressing the social and structural determinants of health has further fostered incentive for upstream medicine. Covid-19 has demonstrated that personalization of care is critical if it is to have an influence on behavioral change and practice or treatment adherence. As we move forward, the goal of all healthcare organizations focused on either prevention or care transition post-hospital discharge is to view population health through a client lens and transform the way care services are delivered to make such care personal.

The purpose of this Research Topic is to call on public health, healthcare, and information technology researchers to submit research that addresses both the challenges in tailoring care to the population at large or to specific population groups (e.g., older adults, rural population, youth with chronic condition, underserved with distinct health inequities, etc.) and opportunities that leverage service innovations, collaborative partnerships, and advanced technologies to support self-care management. Work that has demonstrated effectiveness during Covid-19 in reaching population groups to gather real time information to tailor care, role of diverse community actors in reducing the role of mis-information and tailoring practices to reflect the unique context, are the efficacy of personal technologies such as wearables and apps in engaging population in addressing their fears and anxieties are relevant for this special issue as these will help inform population health strategies going forward. We also welcome studies that conducted using a variety of methods including case studies, design science, empirical studies, and theory development which can inform how best “client” lens in a continually evolving technology landscape and growing consumerism of clients alters the way health systems and public agencies operate in the creation of care plans and support their fulfillment in client ecosystem.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

● Organizational strategy and leadership in addressing population health transformation;
● Technologies (e.g., wearables, apps, IoT, monitors) that gather/disseminate information;
● Use of family/community partners in self-care management, overcome distrust, etc.;
● Use of data analytic tools to classify population groups for tailoring care;
● Design of service innovations that engage clients in the design of care processes;
● Role of social media in addressing continuity of care options or influencing behavior;
● Use of distributed technologies such as blockchain in supporting sharing of information;
● Integration of online and client-generated information with health care;
● Challenges in protecting integrity and privacy of data while personalizing service;
● Role of telemedicine and/or portals in education, consultation, and health monitoring;
● Digital divide and its impact on population health;
● Knowledge sharing platforms for best practices and educating care providers.

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Frontiers in Public Health

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